According to “The Washington Post”, the U.S. State Department has approved the sale of the Barrett M107A1 anti-materiel weapons and ammunition to Ukraine. The sale, including related support and equipment, is worth USD45 million.

Department records show Ukraine has bought small amounts of those types of weapons for several years, both before and after the 2014 Russian annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula.

The department notified Congress of the decision on Dec. 13, spokeswoman Nauert said, adding that the U.S. government was not selling the weapons directly to the Kiev government but was allowing Ukraine to buy from U.S. manufacturers.

“Under the previous two administrations, the U.S. government has approved export licenses to Ukraine, so this is nothing new,” Nauert said.

The M107A1 is a 0.50-calibre semi-automatic anti-materiel rifle developed by Barrett Firearms Manufacturing. This rifle is built on decades of success with the Barrett Model 82A1/M107 rifle. Designed to be used with a suppressor, this rifle allows you to combine signature reduction capabilities with the flawless reliability of the original Barrett M107, but with a weight reduction of 5 pounds.

The M107A1 anti-materiel rifle provides a new capability, giving soldiers the ability to identify and engage effectively vehicle or installation targets with precision to 1,500 m.

These weapons address a specific vulnerability of Ukrainian forces fighting a Russian-backed separatist movement in two eastern provinces. There has been no approval to export the heavier weapons the Ukrainian government is asking for, such as Javelin anti-tank missiles.